A Forgotten Community in New Orleans: Life on a Superfund Site

onJun 22, 2014 @ 11:00 PDT

Shannon Rainey lives in a house that was built on top of a Superfund site in the Upper Ninth Ward of New Orleans.

“I bought my house when I was 25, and thirty years later, I still can’t get out,” she told DeSmogBlog.

Rainey’s home in Gordon Plaza is part of a subdivision developed by the city in 1981 on top of the Agriculture Street landfill. No one disclosed to the buyers that their new homes were built on top of a dump that was closed in 1965.

Rainey has a view of two other city-owned properties also built on the landfill: the shuttered Morton Elementary School and Press Park, an abandoned housing project developed by the Housing Authority of New Orleans (HANO).

“If it were white folks back here, this would be all gone,” Rainey says bluntly.

By Julie Dermansky

Julie Dermansky is a multimedia reporter and artist based in New Orleans. She is an affiliate scholar at Rutgers University’s Center for the Study of Genocide and Human Rights. Visit her website at www.jsdart.com.

‘Get Rid of MAHA’: Trump Alliance Cracks as Climate Denialists Turn on RFK Jr.’s Movement

ByRachel Santarsiero

onApr 17, 2026 @ 06:54 PDT

At the Heartland Institute’s annual climate conference, fossil fuel allies warn MAHA’s push on regulating chemicals and plastics could threaten the oil industry — exposing a growing rift inside Trump’s base.

uk/Sri Lankan ‘Grifters’ Pumping Out AI ‘Energy Policy Rage Bait’ on UK Facebook Feeds

ByJoey Grostern

onApr 17, 2026 @ 03:49 PDT

Experts say mass-produced AI misinformation is the “new Cambridge Analytica scandal”.

Series: Tech vs. Climate

Series: Tech vs Climate

Canadian Media Platforms Atlas Network Groups Pushing Fossil Fuels in Response to Iran War

ByTaylor Noakes

onApr 15, 2026 @ 12:06 PDT

The think tank representatives are making variations of a similar argument: Trump’s illegal military incursions serve as an opportunity for Canada to expand oil and gas infrastructure.